Beauty Chat: What do you Struggle With When It Comes to Makeup?

Hey Guys, I hope you're having a great week so far! I thought it might be fun to break away from my usual content every once in a while and do a Beauty Chat, where we talk about a specific beauty-related topic.

Today's topic is something that's been on my mind lately...What do you Struggle With When it Comes to Makeup?

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about the beauty industry and certain "standards" that have been established the past few years, particularly when it comes to the makeup looks that you see all over Instagram and YouTube. There seems to be a one-size-fits-all trend happening, where creating a makeup look means applying many different products in a certain way... lots of brightening concealer under your eyes and then "baking" it, false lashes, many different eyeshadow shades on your eyes, cut creases, highlighting, contouring, etc. The girls and guys creating these looks are super-talented and their makeup comes out flawlessly but for some reason I have the worst time trying to re-create these looks on myself.

For the longest time, I felt like I was doing something wrong, or maybe I'm just not cut out to do makeup (which felt kind of crappy considering I'm a beauty blogger!). Every time I try to copy an eyeshadow look, I end up with a muddy, unblended mess. Baking my concealer (or even setting it with powder) results in the fine lines under my eyes becoming even more prominent and dry-looking. Matte liquid lipsticks always end up cracking and looking crusty on my lips shortly after applying them, even if I exfoliate and moisturize beforehand.

It may seem obvious but it took me a while to realize that just because something is trendy, doesn't mean it's going to work for everyone.

And that's okay.

I've been doing my own makeup since I was a teenager and back then, there was no YouTube. I read fashion magazines like Cosmo, Glamour, YM, and Seventeen and I pored over the beauty sections and learned all sorts of tips and tricks for applying makeup. When I think back, I can remember articles like, "How to Make the Most of Your Eye Shape" or "The Right Shades for Your Skin Tone"...they were always about finding the look that was best for you, not creating one look and expecting it to look great on everyone.

So over the years, I learned to do my makeup based on playing up the features I was born with, and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, when I worked at Sephora (12 years ago) we all received basic makeup artistry training and were encouraged to determine and then play up a client's best assets rather that trying to create trendy looks on them, which makes total sense to me.

One of my more frustrating features is hooded eyes, which means that my eyelid folds back into my crease when my eyes are open so my eyelid isn't visible (think Blake Lively, Jennifer Aniston, and Jennifer Lawrence as examples of women with hooded eyes). Also, the older I get, the more hooded my eyes become. So basically, anything I apply to my eyelid is going to fold up into my crease and eventually get smudged. It's annoying, but is probably the reason why doing a complicated eyeshadow look ends up looking all muddy and blended together after I'm finished. As a result, I usually try to stick to what I've been doing for years...one all-over lid shade (light for daytime, deeper for night) and then a highlight on my browbone, mascara, and that's it. If I'm going out to an event, I might add a deeper shade at the outer corner and some liner but for the most part I keep it very simple. It may be boring, but it works for me and I do think it helps to make my eyes look larger and more awake. It also makes me feel better to know that some of the most beautiful women in the world share the same feature. :)

Celebrities with Hooded Eyes

I also have really dry skin, and concealer doesn't crease on me. I've never set my concealer with anything in the past and it's been fine, but after watching so many YouTube videos, I started to think maybe I'm doing something wrong. Everybody sets their makeup with powder...I've never seen someone not do that. So I started doing it for a while and in real life it looked awful on me. I feel like it aged me another 10 years (definitely not something you want to happen). Now I use a setting spray to keep everything looking fresh longer but that's about it. Again, it's just one of those things that just because everyone is doing it, doesn't mean it's going to work for you.

I never used to share photos of myself on the blog or on Instagram because my makeup looks didn't look like everyone else's. I felt that my simple makeup application couldn't compete with all of the glam looks on the beautiful bloggers that were being featured all over Instagram. But this past year or so, I've just stopped caring. The whole point of having a blog (or a YouTube Channel or an Instagram page) is to present your own unique take on a topic to the world, and I'm a firm believer that being unique keeps things from getting boring!

I don't mean this to be a dig to anyone who may have a channel or a blog and applies their makeup the way I described above, because that's what works for them and honestly, they should stick to doing that because they look amazing! I'm really directing this post toward those of you who are like me, who struggle with trying to apply makeup a certain way because it's what everyone else is doing. It's easy to fall into that trap and start feeling that frustration that your makeup isn't turning out the same way, but I've learned that it's much better to figure out what works for you and how to play up your own unique features. You'll feel so much better about yourself!

So I guess you could say that my most recent beauty struggle was re-learning to stick with what works despite the popular makeup trends.

Now I'd love to hear from you...what do you struggle with when it comes to makeup? Let's chat!

30 comments

First, I love the Beauty Chat idea. I'm not always in the mood to buy makeup but it is one of my favorite topics to talk about so I like reading articles like this. Second, I love your message here. The beauty industry has changed a lot and most of it is due to social media. I cringe when I see naturally beautiful girls wearing gobs of makeup trying to emulate their favorite You Tube guru. I too wish that more women would learn to play up their unique beauty. As for my own beauty struggles, I have a hard time with getting my brows to look even. They are pretty sparse due to over plucking so I have to fill them in a lot and they never look right.

Great article, Jen! My main struggle when it comes to makeup is that I buy way too much of it. As you probably know by now, I have an unhealthy obsession with eye shadow palettes and love to collect them. But it really is silly considering most of us tend to be drawn to the same colors and buy multiple palettes of the similar colors over and over. Plus, I have this tendency to collect all of the releases of a particular brand or series. But I'm aware of it and I am being more mindful of what I buy. Thankfully, I'm not a pack-rat so I do keep the piles of stuff moving by either selling, gifting, or tossing.But in reference to your article, I agree that everyone has to find what works for them and not emulate images that were probably done by professionals and retouched, too. BTW you always look lovely and fresh-faced so whatever your're doing, keep doing for you! -- Christina D.

First of all, "Beau," I want to say that I think you are more beautiful than 99% of the beauty bloggers and vloggers out there. Hope that doesn't sound creepy and I mean it in a polite way (I'm old enough to be your Mom and would be so proud to have a daughter that looks and acts like you). You look real. You look beautiful. You look healthy.

I've seen beauty trends come and go since the 1960s and the current ones of over-contouring, over-highlighting, huge stenciled black (no matter the person's actual coloring) spray-painted eyebrows, thick plastic-looking foundation, and huge overlined lips are THE WORST. It does seem like every young woman wants to look like the same few celebrities, and frankly they end up looking like plastic robots or drag queens. No offense to actual drag queens.

My only consolation is that it's the nature of fads to fade away and I hope we move back to the more natural look of the 1970s, although without the overtweezed eyebrows. One recent marketing campaign that gave me hope was Sonia Kashuk's spring 2015 Sahara Sunset collection -- Google that and look at the model in the wide-brimmed hat. You can see she's wearing makeup but you also see her freckles and normal-sized eyebrows.

My personal struggle with makeup is, like Anonymous, buying too much and wanting to be a complete-ist if I love one thing in a collection. Then I want it all. I also need to spend more time on skin care and perhaps less worrying about makeup. Great topic!

Hi Sue! Thank you so much, that's SO sweet of you to say! :) I remember that Sonia Kashuk campaign and was drawn to it because of the natural look the model had. I can only hope that the trend will swing back that way soon because I don't think the heavy makeup does anyone any favors unless it's for photography. In real life, it seems to make everyone look older, whether they're very young or more mature. The older I get, I've started wearing less and less foundation because I don't like the way it looks on my skin, and I think I usually look better without it. I still use concealer on areas that are discolored, like under my eyes and around my nose but many foundations make my skin look older these days!

I have a hooded eye too( however, my eyes are large). I didnt realize that until YT. I can't do a wing for the life of me, so I've basically given that up. I do accentuate my crease though, it opens up my eye. I used to struggle with falsies, but after practicing, I've gotten pretty good.

oh boy... where do I begin. First of all, I don't have flawless skin. It's textured from acne scars and, now, due to menapause, fighting off pores is quite a challenge. So, getting foundation to look decent is difficult. But I'm still working on it (and am having success with Maybelline Dream Cushion foundation). I'm struggling also with who to trust in this youtube beauty industry... who's getting paid how much for promoting what?s I have decided to stop spending money on high priced beauty items and try the less expensive ones first. if it works, great... if not, it goes back to Ulta or Sephora, most Ulta because that's where I can find the lower priced items. And, I am happy to say that I have found some great products at a lower price. I'm addicted to Mac lip pencils so forget about that. I prefer to spend my money on skin care!

Mary, do you use primer before your foundation? What a difference! Beauddiction reviewed one from L'Oreal called Studio Secrets and I bought it because of her review. It's become my Holy Grail of primers -- colorless, no scent, makes pores almost vanish, affordable. Plus I like that it feels slightly less slick than much more expensive primers.

Hi Mary! That's a great idea because a lot of the drugstore products these days are just as good as the higher-priced ones. I've heard great things about the Maybelline Dream Cushion and I purchased it recently but haven't tried it yet! :)

When it comes to makeup, I don't concern myself too much with trendy application techniques. Instead, I look to the colors that are trending and use them to achieve the look I will always love most: natural and radiant. When the 2015 Pantone color of the year, Marsala, was announced, I had so much fun buying blush and lipstick inspired by this color! I love what Violette, a French makeup artist, shares regarding French beauty. "What we want is to be ourselves-not a better version of ourselves. We feel like it's better to be used to something than to try to change it. So we think: What style can I have with this face, and with this hair?" I like to think I've adopted this philosophy, but before I did, I really struggled to master the perfect smokey eye and nude lip. Any attempt made me look bruised. I've moved on but still appreciate how beautiful other women make it look.

I LOVE that quote Carmen! I'm discovering that philosophy more and more and have stopped wishing for things I don't have. When I try to change things about myself, I feel like it looks "try-hard" and when I just embrace them, I look more effortless and natural, which is a quality I've always admired about French women. :)

My struggle is matching and blending eye shadows. I have all these wonderful palettes (anastasia, too faced, lorac, it cosmetics) and can never get the looks that I see online or in magazines. My next struggle is the liquid eyeliner. I've purchased the thinnest of the thin and even the ones with the ball on the end but I always end up with a thin-thick line that covers more of my eyelid (like Amy Winehouse) only not as neat or intentional.

I hear ya when it comes to blending eyeshadows. I always do too much blending (so the colors disappear) or too little and I have harsh lines. Ugh. I've somewhat mastered liquid eyeliner by lying it on its side instead of using the tip to draw the line. I start in the middle of my eyelid and just sort of "stamp" it along my lash line to the outer corner. Then I go back in and do the same from the inner corner back to the middle. :)

I really enjoy applying make up. It is like starting my day with a little mini art project... A bit of creativity to start my day and some "me time" while my coffee sinks in, so that I am able to form a complete sentence and face the world. My challenge is in streamlining a lot of the beautiful looks that I have seen on others to make them both work appropriate in a professional setting, and suitable for my situation (late 40s with decent skin, but gravity taking it's toll). For example, I absolutely love some of the eyeshadow palettes that are out there for spring. They are gorgeous with bright colors and lovely shimmery finishes. As much as I am drawn to these beautiful shades, I could never reasonably wear them at my age, given my profession and work environment, so I end up stuck in a rut of lightly applied neutrals. I would love to exercise more creativity, but I'm not sure how to do so and be able to pull it off without looking like an old hag who is trying too hard! 😖

Hahaha I know exactly what you mean! I love color and am drawn to it but I worry about looking clownish. Also, as a stay-at-home-Mom, I don't have anywhere to wear those kinds of shades...I feel like people in the grocery store would give me weird looks! I do regret not experimenting more with makeup when I was in my 20's, but oh well. :)

I love this article!! I totally agree; I am not loving the "one look fits all" mentality going on right now. I cannot do a liquid eyeliner flick for my life, and my acne will always show through my foundation, but I don't care because eyeshadow and lipstick colors and much more interesting and important to me! Since you mentioned and I was just looking into them, what's your favorite setting spray? I've only used the elf one, and while it is nice for getting rid of a powdery look, it doesn't seem to add any weartime.

My biggest issue is actually finding a foundation I can wear. I would love to be able to go without, but I have a lot of redness and texture. But the problem I have is with ingredients. I am severely allergic to Butylene Glycol. Even if it is the last ingredient, I break out in an itchy rash that takes forever to go away. I have oily skin and it seems like almost everything that is marketed for oily skin contains b.g. It is so frustrating!

Oh wow, I can see how that would be really frustrating! Do you ever use powder foundations? I don't have oily skin but I wonder if they would work well without causing irritation! Pur Cosmetics and IT Cosmetics make fabulous ones!

Wow I really like beauty chat! Great Idea!! I really have to agree with you about these over the top makeup looks, they may look great on a 20 something year old but really horrid on a 50 year old. I have watched tons of makeup videos and tried quite few different techniques, most of the time I look like a clown. So I was watching Wayne Goss on youtube (he's one of my favorites) but he was talking about the amount of foundation we use, for example you can use 1 pump instead of 2 and look more natural and to just add extra foundation where its needed the most. Well I tried it and he was right even hubby came home that day and asked what I did because I look really good!That whole thing about baking under your eyes must have been created by a very young person because oh my it showed lines that I didn't know I had! Horrible!!I have normal to dry skin and I powder. I never used to but once again Wayne Goss had a technique that I tried once and after following his instructions my face did in fact look airbrushed, it was amazing. The funniest thing is that I didn't even use any fancy powder just Cody Airspun. Which is the same exact powder that my Grandmother used to use. It's been around since the 1930's so it must be a pretty good product plus I got it for only $8 at Walmart. When you get a chance you really need to watch his videos because he really shoots straight from the hip and he has some really good tips. He also has done a tutorial for older woman and how to apply eyeshadow for hooded eyes.So if you watch him let me know what you think.

I love Wayne Goss! I need to check out that video you mentioned about the powder. His hooded eye tutorial is the one that made me realize that I even had hooded eyes in the first place...I really enjoy his methods because he's not over-the-top. :)

Hi Jen, So glad you've brought this topic up. Having deep set eyes, I cannot recreate the trendy, gorgeous eye looks that are popular on YouTube without making them appear even deeper, rounder, and raccoon-like. I had to step outside the box and find the shades that work for me. Since deep set eyes have a natural crease, it's best to use light to transition shade shadows. Dark shades will contribute towards creating that dreaded raccoon eyes instead of the smoky eye. If I want to have some fun with color, I wear a jewel toned shade as an eyeliner. It's a safe way to wear color without looking theatrical. I use mascara that creates Texas sized lashes because it helps balance out the eye shape. As much as I love eyeshadow palettes, I have to stick to those that run on the lighter side (so hard to find these days), custom make my own, or buy individual shadows:( Another annoying thing for me is finding a bronzer shade that will not muddy up my light skin. For this reason, I have to buy cool toned or neutral bronzes geared towards light skin (another tall order). So that's that. I hope it helps someone who has similar issues. MarinaD

Ha. That would be everything for me. Seriously, I enjoy playing with my makeup as much as the next person, but that doesn't mean that I'm good at it. Here goes;Winged liner? Forget it. Hooded eyes here. Once in a while, I may do a tiny flick with the liner I put UNDER my lower lashline, but that's it.Mascara - love how it transforms my eyes, but it gets so tiring fighting with clumps, little balls on the ends, one crazy lash trying to take all of the product and being twice the length of the others; and of course trying not to get any on my hoods. Shadow - no crazy 27 different color combos for me. My max capacity is a lid shade, a darker color tapped into the outer third of the lid, and highlight under the brow. I gave up trying to put darker colors above the crease; it only made me look overly made up and scary.Blush - please don't hate me Jen, but I'm not a fan. It never looks natural, mostly makes me look clownish. Honestly, the best one for me is one I bought after one of your reviews; the neutrogena sheer blends one (not the singles, the blend of four shades). Looks pretty good with a LIGHT hand.Contouring - gave it up after a few attempts. I think it looks much better in pictures than in real life.Foundation AND Powder - still struggling to get this right, have not succeeded. It took me awhile to finally figure out that no one product can address all of the issues of my combination aging skin. So I'm trying to work with primers, bb cream and powder; but it just seems that no matter what I do, my pores still show, my fine lines around my mouth are magnified, and powder accentuates my face fuzz. Not good.Lip color - I actually love lipstick; but I am lazy and thus I do not use lip pencils or lip primers as I should (I bought them, but don't wear them!) I just swipe it on. In the colder months, I cannot wear lipstick no matter how much I exfoliate; my lips are just too dry. I can only wear the moisturizing tinted lip balms in that kind of weather. There's much more that I could complain about, but I'll stop now. It truly is a wonder that I still, in spite of all the above difficulties, do enjoy my makeup.

Hi Nikole! I feel the same way sometimes...I also don't like to contour, don't wear lipstick that often (mostly tinted balms), rarely wear foundation, and can't wear a lot of eyeshadow and yet I still have a huge makeup collection and enjoy using it. :)